The Shadow
by MakaylaBreanne
Summary: Okay well, this is the beginning to my Danny Phantom series and it takes place before Danny's class graduates. Basically Sam wishes away her memory and comes back as a ghost hunter by the name of Shadow. Danny is desperately trying to find Sam, while trying to figure out who exactly Shadow is. Meanwhile someone is plotting their downfall and Sam's time is running out!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Okay well this is the beginning to my Danny Phantom series! I really hope you like it and let me know what you think! No flames please! Enjoy!**

**I do not own Danny Phantom!**

Prologue

SPOV

"How's the speech coming?" Danny questioned as we were walking home from the park.

"Err, it's coming I guess…" I shrugged.

"You don't sound too confident," Tucker noted as he polished off the hot dog he bought from the vendor a few minutes before.

"I don't know you guys. It's just that I never thought in a billion years that I would get valedictorian, I mean what am I supposed to say?"

"You'll figure it out," Danny assured me.

"What makes you say that?" I scoffed looking over at him is disbelief.

"Because you're just that smart," he stated, meeting my gaze.

I could feel the blood rush to my face as I gave him a small smile.

"You really think so?" I asked, biting my lip.

"Of course," he said, cheeks turning red.

"Lovebird alert," Tucker suddenly chirped.

"WE'RE NOT LOVEBIRDS!" we yelled simultaneously.

"Whatever," Tucker snorted walking ahead of us.

I rolled my eyes and turned to say something to Danny when an ear piercing scream shattered the peaceful setting. My head whipped around to face the direction the noise had come from. Not a second later, Johnny 13 came driving above the trees holding tightly to Paulina. He hovered in the air for a second as she continued to shriek for help and tried to kick and claw her way free.

"Let go of me!" she howled, her Latina accent coming out strong.

"Hold still would you!" Johnny barked at her as he tried to pull her onto his still hovering motorcycle.

"Well this is bittersweet," I said dryly as I took in the scene.

"I know, and since when can he fly like that?" Danny asked.

"Uh guys, shouldn't we do something?" Tucker shouted.

"I don't know," I pursed my lips in thought, "I think she'll like the ghost zone."

"Sam," Danny said giving me a look.

"Yeah, I know. Just change already!"

Danny nodded appreciatively as he yanked me and Tucker in front of him and I felt the familiar cool gust of air and could see the bright flash of light out of the corner of my eye. He shot into the air to attack. Once he was gone I reached behind me and pressed a button on my backpack. After a second, wings sprouted out the side and began lifting me into the air.

"Where did you get that?" Tucker shouted.

"It was a birthday present from Danny!" I called back as I began flying up to the action.

DPOV

"Call me crazy, but aren't you already spoken for?" I called once I was in front of Johnny and Paulina.

"We had a fight! This one's going to make Kitty come crawling back," Johnny explained glaring at me.

"What is it with you two and making each other jealous?" I asked as I returned his glare with one of my own.

"Ah what do you know? Get out of my way punk," the ghost seethed as he revved the engine on his motorcycle.

"Save me ghost boy!" a still dangling Paulina whimpered.

I rolled my eyes. Four years and she still refuses to use my name.

"I'm sorry, is there a problem here?" a new voice questioned sarcastically.

I turned around and saw Sam fly up with her jet pack.

"Nice wings," I joked.

"Thanks! It was a gift," she laughed as she flew up.

"Oh look it's your girlfriend," Johnny taunted.

"Girlfriend?" Paulina squealed shooting daggers at Sam.

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"I'm not his girlfriend!"

"Yeah well, whatever you are, I got to get going," Johnny cackled as he stepped on the gas pedal and headed right for me and Sam.

We both dodged to the side and began chasing after him. It wasn't long till I was right beside him.

"I'm sorry sir, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to pull you over," I shouted.

Johnny looked over at me in surprise and growled in annoyance.

"Buzz off!" he yelled as he began trying to ram me.

I grit my teeth and shot an ecto ray at him, but he swerved and it missed. Paulina screamed in terror as she tried to scramble onto the bike. I continued to shoot, but it was no use. He kept dodging everything I threw at him. Finally he skidded to a stop and glared angrily at me.

"What? Giving up the chase?" I yelled, raising an eyebrow.

"You wish! Shadow attack!" he shouted pointing at me.

Shadow flew from underneath the bike and shot right at me. I began to build up an ecto ball, when he flew directly over me. I turned around in confusion and gasped in horror. He was heading straight for Sam who had gotten the Fenton Thermos ready. She looked up just in time to see Shadow go straight for her jet pack. There was a groan of metal and a sizzling sound, and then she began to fall.

My eyes widened as I flew towards her and grabbed her hand. I grit my teeth as I tried to pull her up, but my grip wasn't that great. I glanced up and saw Shadow return to Johnny.

"Well, I guess I'll be going since you have your hands full," Johnny laughed as he revved his bike again.

I shot another ecto ray at him in anger, and this time I actually hit. The bike shook dangerously and Johnny was so caught off guard that he let go of Paulina. I managed to grab her just as Johnny drove off.

"Well, that was annoying," I heard Sam mutter.

I was about to reply when a gushing Paulina began climbing up my arm to hug my neck.

"Hey! Careful! Watch it!" I cried as I tried to keep my hold on Sam.

Only it was no use. Sam's hand slipped out of mine and there was no way I could grab it this time.

"SAM!" I screamed as she plummeted to the ground.

She shrieked in fear before she landed in the top of a tree. I felt relief course through my veins. She didn't hit the ground. She was okay. Right?

SPOV

I felt my hand slip before he did and tried to grab back on, but I was too late. Air whipped all around me as I fell towards the ground. I think he shouted my name, but it was hard to tell from my own screaming. I honestly thought that I was going to die, at least before I fell through the top of a tree and landed on one of the branches.

I gasped for air as the landing knocked the wind out of me. Once I caught my breath I looked down and saw that I wasn't too far from the ground. I carefully rolled off the tree limb and landed in the grass on my butt. I rubbed my head as I accessed the damage. It wasn't too bad. Just a couple of scrapes and bruises and a minor rip in my jeans. I shook the leaves out of my long hair as I stood up and began making my way back to the small crowd of people that had gathered.

I peeked through some bushes and could see Danny landing and setting Paulina down. My eyes narrowed as I took in the shallow witch. It was her fault I fell.

"Oh thank you so much for saving me ghost boy," she cooed as he cuddled into him.

I couldn't help but gag in disgust and a little jealousy.

"Uh no problem, now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find Sam," Danny said as he tried to shrug her off.

I couldn't help my smug smile. Guess he lost feelings for her. The crowd began to part, and Danny began heading in my direction. Once the last of the crowd was gone—apart from Tucker—Paulina grabbed his shoulder and yanked him back to her.

"Wait! There's something I want to give you!" she exclaimed before pulling him close and meeting his lips with her own.

My eyes widened as Danny's eyes began to flutter close and his hands began to rest on her waste. I covered my mouth with my hand and began backing up. He wasn't over her. I was stupid to think he was. I was really stupid for even thinking I had a chance.

I let out a sob once I was far enough away and slid down to the ground.

"I can't believe I thought I'd have a chance. How could I possibly have a chance when he could have her?" I spat, "I wish that I could forget everything! Forget my feelings, forget Danny, just everything!"

Suddenly green smoke began circling around me really fast. I wiped the tears away from my face and stood up and looked around wildly. Evil laughter filled the air and two sets of red eyes appeared through the fog.

"Your wish is my command," a wicked voice hissed.

My eyes widened and the smoke began to fill my body. I let out a scream as I fell back down and began to claw at my face. I felt like I was suffocating and that part of me was being ripped away. Suddenly all feeling went away and everything just seemed to grow heavy. The last thing I thought of was a pair of blue eyes, and then nothingness.

DPOV

"Wait! There's something I want to give you!" Paulina squealed as she pulled me into a kiss.

My eyes squinted shut and I pushed her off. She looked at me in shock once I was out of her grasp.

"Sorry, not interested. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find Sam," I told her.

Her mouth dropped open.

"Are you seriously choosing that loser over me?" she huffed.

"That 'loser' happens to be my best friend, and yeah I am," I replied.

"Fine! I don't need you anyway!" she yelled.

I shook my head as she stormed off in a fit.

"Issues, the girl has issues," Tucker managed to say.

"You're telling me," I agreed, "Let's go find Sam."

"What happened?"

"Oh well Paulina caused her to fall and—" I was cut off by another scream, but I knew this scream, "Sam!"

Tucker and I exchanged looks and tore off through the bushes.

It was hours later when we finally sat down on a bench. I placed my head in my hands in defeat. We had looked everywhere, but she was nowhere to be found.

"Don't worry, dude. She probably just went home or something," Tucker said reassuringly.

I shook my head in doubt.

"No, Sam wouldn't do that. Something happened to her, something bad. It's like she just disappeared."


	2. Chapter 2

**And here is chapter 1! Enjoy!**

**I don't own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 1

~ 2 Weeks Later ~

NPOV

"When is she going to wake up? That part of her is no use to me asleep!" a dark figure hissed to the ghost in front of him.

"You can't rush something like this. She wanted to forget everything and that takes enough time and effort in itself to bury everything deep within her mind, but in order to arrange the wish to meet your needs, I had to rip out her half of her soul! That's a grueling process and a painful one. Her body has to get used to the absence…well at least until it grows weak and dies," the ghost snapped.

"I don't understand why you had to bury her memories. Why not just yank them out?" her partner quizzed.

"It's impossible to 'yank' away someone's memory. They can never truly forget, but don't worry. I believe I buried them deep enough that it will take a miracle for her to possibly access them again, and even if she does, it will be too late," she stated haughtily.

The figure nodded and closed his red eyes as if in thought.

"I do have a question," his female counterpart said.

"Ask away."

"Why do you need the soul asleep in the first place? Why don't you just go ahead and destroy it?" she nodded her head in the direction of the glowing body lying on the small stack of mattresses in the middle of the room.

"Simple. When it's asleep, it dreams. And when it dreams, I harvest."

"And why do you need her's in particular?"

"Ah, yes. The last time I was here, I paid her and the ghost boy's dreams special attention. They were exactly alike, and that is a very rare occurrence. It also means that they're dreams are very powerful, even individually. Her dreams alone are enough to keep me well-nourished for years," he answered thoughtfully as he walked over to the soul in question.

Her normally pale skin held an unearthly glow and her long, raven hair spread out along the mattress, creating an illusion of ink on paper. Her eyes were closed in peace and she had a small, content smile on her lips, indicating that her dreams were good.

Her captor chuckled darkly as he peered inside her mind to see the dream for himself. A dark, starlit night in the arms of the one she loved. He pulled out and walked away back to his partner.

"Her body should be waking soon," she murmured as her eyes flickered to the small heap on the floor across the room.

"Well then, I'm afraid I'll have to leave you for a while. I have some last minute things to set up," the figure replied as he flew over to the body and picked it up.

"What are you doing with her?"

"Just planting a few seeds," and with that he flew out of their hideaway.

SPOV

"Unghhh," I groaned as I sat up and rubbed my head.

My eyes opened to a dimly lit room. I looked around in wonder and confusion.

How did I get here? Where was here? Who am I?

I shook the questions from my mind, and began to assess the situation. There was a small twin sized bed in the corner and an old, wooden desk at the window. There was no chair. The room smelled damp and the wallpaper had water stains all over it.

Is this where I live?

I stood up and went to a door beside the bed. I opened it cautiously and saw that it led to a bathroom. I shut it and turned around to see a wooden dresser and a mirror. My eyes widened as I took in my reflection. Apparently I had pale skin, waist length black hair, and amethyst eyes. My lips were pursed in thought as my eyes traveled lower. I was dressed in dark skinny jeans that had a slight rip on the knee, black combat boots, and a black t-shirt. I slowly walked forward to get a closer examination. My ears were pierces multiple times and there was a little diamond stud in my nose. I looked down at my hands to see that my nails were clean and filed to a reasonable length. Then I noticed a black band on my wrist. I took it off and stretched it curiously.

Suddenly a blurry image flashed through my mind of a girl taking a band like this and using it to pull up her hair. I shook my head in shock as a small gasp escaped my mouth. I bit my lip cautiously as I copied the vision. When I was done, I leaned back to examine my work and was pleased to see a high pony tail that kept most of the hair out of my face. I left some strands next to my ears, and of course there were my bangs left alone.

"Hmmm…" I hummed as I continued to look around.

I noticed another door across the room and went to open it. This led out to a hallway with multiple other doors. I looked down and noticed a box resting at my feet. I carefully picked it up and went back into my room. I sat down on the bed and opened the box.

Inside there was a neatly folded suit of some sort and some type of container. There was also a belt, thigh pack, knee high boots, gloves, some kind of bracelets, and a strap that I guessed went around your shoulder like some type of sash. I narrowed my eyes in confusion as I began emptying the box of its contents. Once all that stuff was out of the way, I could see a few more items at the bottom, a stick of sorts and a clear bag with the words 'PROJECT SHADOW' written on it. There was a small chip inside it, and a folded up sheet of paper.

I sat that down and began going through everything else more thoroughly. I picked up the container and opened it to see small disks lying at the bottom. I pulled one out and realized that they were some type of weapon. I went for the stick next. There was a tiny button on the side, and I clicked it. Suddenly the stick vibrated, and the ends extended themselves to be about my height. There was a spear on one end with purple energy charging along the blade.

"Cool," I murmured, as I pressed the button again, returning it to normal, "I wonder why I have all this stuff…"

I opened the bag next and pulled out the sheet of paper, which turned out to be about six sheets. I unfolded them and saw a diagram of the whole outfit and how it was supposed to look. A closer look showed me a little arrow pointing to the left wrist bracelet.

"Power source here," I read aloud, "Power source? What power sour—wait a second!"

I looked back down at the bag and saw the chip. I nodded with understanding and continued to read. It turned out that it was an instruction manual on how everything worked and on what it did. Apparently it was supposed to help you hunt ghosts, and it seemed that it was meant for me.

"Well at least now I have some clue as to who I am," I smirked as I held up the suit admiringly.

DPOV

"Mr. Fenton?" Lancer called, breaking my train of thought.

"Huh? What?" I asked, focusing my eyes on him.

"I realize that you're overwhelmed by Miss Manson's disappearance, but that doesn't mean that you can stop focusing on your studies. I mean come on people! Graduation is in less than two months away!" he cried in exasperation.

Once he was done preaching at me, he turned back to the board and continued his lecture on some type of poetry. I went back to my thoughts about Sam. She had been missing for two weeks now. Her parents had the whole police force out looking for her, and Tucker, Jazz, and I had formed our own search party. We had scanned the Ghost Zone and interrogated basically every ghost we knew, but there was no sign of her anywhere.

I sighed in defeat. What else could I do? Tucker and Jazz had given up days ago, but I refused to give in. I couldn't do that to her. I loved her too much to let her go so easily. I was interrupted yet again, by the shrill ring of the bell. I bolted out of my desk and headed to my locker. I quickly put in the combination and yanked the door open, but I froze when my eyes met the picture in the back. I was just a simple picture of me, Tucker, and Sam at her eighteenth birthday party, but to me it was everything. It reminded me of her, and it kept the hope alive.

I slowly put my books up and reached for the picture. I rubbed Sam's smiling face with my thumb, and slipped it into my wallet. I was going to need all the hope I could get.

"Danny we've been searching all night and she's nowhere to be found," Tucker whined through the Fenton Phones.

"He's right Danny. I'm exhausted, Tuck's exhausted, and you're exhausted. Besides, there's really nowhere else to look," Jazz piped in.

I stopped flying and hovered in the air overlooking the spot where Sam had fallen. She couldn't just be gone. Could she?

"Alright. Go home and get some sleep you guys. Jazz I'll be home in a little bit, there's something I want to check," I replied.

"Okay," she said reluctantly.

With that I turned off the Fenton Phones and flew down to the tree she had fallen through. I had checked this area multiple times already, but I could have over looked something. There was nothing in the tree, so I flew to the ground.

"Okay, Sam, what could've happened to you?" I whispered to myself as I inspected every nook and cranny, only to come up empty again.

I sighed and slid to the ground. How could this have happened? Why did it have to happen to her? I changed back to my human half and leaned against the tree and looked up at the starlit sky.

"Where are you Sam?"

SPOV

I stood in front of the mirror admiring my reflection. I had finally studied all the instructions and even practiced a little. As it turned out, I was apparently a pro at handling weaponry. Now I had slipped into the suit to find that it fit perfectly. It was made out of some kind of stretchy fabric, but was hard like a shell at the same time, and had built in gloves. It was black with a purple tent to it, and there was a part on the front of the neck to cover half of my face. The boots were up to my knees and plain black. I had discovered that the bracelets had little buttons on them. There was one on the right that would pull out a wrist ray and there was an empty space on the left where the chip or 'power source' would go. I had yet to insert it.

I had put the thermos, which was used to capture ghosts, in the belt and my little throwing disks into my thigh pouch. The spear went on the back of my little sash thing, kind of like a ninja of sorts I guess.

Once I had everything ready, I picked up the chip and eyed it suspiciously. I still had no idea what power it was supposed to give me. The only things I really knew about it was that it was important and that if you clicked it when it was in the button space on the bracelet that the suit would somehow peel off your skin and go into storage in the chip. The only thing that would stay visible was the bracelet. And you could get the suit back on by clicking the button again. That's all the instructions gave me though.

I was a little nervous once I inserted it into its proper place; I mean I was completely clueless as to what was going to happen. I didn't feel anything at first, but then it was like tons of cold air entered my body. I shivered slightly, but soon that feeling went away, and was replaced by a pleasant warmness.

"Interesting…" I murmured as I inspected myself, looking for anything.

I bit my lip in frustration when I came up empty. Nothing. I tapped my foot, trying to think of what the chip could possibly be doing when I felt like I was floating. I looked down in confusion only to find that I was about five feet off the ground!

I gasped in shock and began pin wheeling my arms wildly, trying to keep myself steady. I was floating! I was flying! All of a sudden a door slammed nearby, shattering my concentration and caused me to fall on the floor. I glared at the door angrily and moved my head to situate my bangs when I saw that it was glowing purple! I instantly thrust it away from me, which caused a ball of it fly out of my hand and singe the wallpaper!

"Whoa!" I exclaimed as I examined my smoking hand, "I think I have an idea on what this chip can do…"

I straightened up and faced the mirror. I began concentrating really hard and after a second my reflection was gone! I looked down and saw that my body was gone! I was invisible! Suddenly I looked at the wall with the window and desk. There was really only one more test to do.

I backed up and readied myself for possible failure. Then I took a deep breath and concentrated for a second before breaking off into a run. I shut my eyes as I reached the wall, but there was no impact. A second later I opened my eyes and saw that I was outside!

"Ghost powers! The chip gave me ghost like abilities!" I marveled.

I rushed back inside to look at the instructions.

I had skimmed through the notes about ten times before I finally decided that there was nothing in there on the ghost like abilities the chip had given me. I sighed as I looked at the mirror.

"Well I guess if I practice enough, then it'll be easy to control. I mean all I really did was concentrate. Still I think I need a name…at least until I can remember who I am and everything else..." I mused.

I began to pace, trying to think of a good name. All of a sudden, I stumbled over the delivery box and glanced down at it. There was the bag the chip had been in. I bent over and picked it up only to see that it was just the project name. I quickly read over it a second and then a light bulb went off.

"'Project Shadow' huh? Well how about just 'Shadow'?" I asked myself quietly.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 2! Hope you like it!**

**I don't own Danny Phantom**

Chapter 2

~ 2 Days Later ~

SPOV

"Get back here, ghost!" I growled as I flew after it.

"Never! No one will ever catch me, for I am the Box Ghost!" he wailed.

I grit my teeth as I willed myself to fly faster. I was right on his tail when he flew inside an old building. I quickly went intangible and followed him inside.

"Come out wherever you are!" I shouted as I looked around for him.

My chase had led me to an old warehouse full of boxes and trash. Suddenly, I heard devious laughter. I turned around and saw him standing on the ground, his eyes glowed a bright red and a maniacal smile appeared on his face. He almost looked, well like a ghost.

"Fear me, for I have you cornered! Beware my cardboard cubes of DOOM!" he bellowed as he raised his arms and caused multiple boxes to glow and rise into the air.

"Are you kidding me?" I snorted as I raised my eyebrow.

He was just about to say something when I quickly raised my arm level with his chest and shot an energy ball at him. He grunted loudly as it made contact and sent him flying into a huge pile of boxes.

"Unghhh," he moaned as I sucked him into my thermos.

I smiled cockily as I brushed my hands together. I flew out of the building and began heading back to the motel I was living at.

The Box Ghost was the latest of a series of ghosts I had caught within the past two days. I could now work the chip like a pro, and it was awesome. It was all just so natural feeling. There was no way I could've been anything else other than a ghost hunter.

I was just about to enter my building when distant shouts caused me to turn around.

"Must be another ghost," I muttered, as I flew off towards the panicked shouts.

DPOV

"Tuck! Anytime now," I called as I dodged another set of Skulker's missiles.

"I'm trying! I don't know what's wrong! He's seemed to have put up some kind of firewall, and I can't get through!" he shouted back.

"Give it up whelp! Your pelt is mine!" he cackled as he kept trying to blast me.

"Don't you have anything better to do? I thought you had a girlfriend!" I cried as I went out of my way to avoid the oncoming threats and tried to get as many shots in as I could myself.

"I do have a girlfriend!" he retorted as he blasted me straight in the chest.

I shrieked in pain as my back smacked against the side of a building. Black dots danced across my vision as I tried to recover, but Skulker was already on top of me. He quickly shot one of those stupid nets at me and dragged me towards him in victory.

"You're going to be my anniversary gift for her," he stated.

"Oh great, not only do I get turned into a pelt, but I get to hang on your wall and watch you make out with your girlfriend," I said bitingly.

He laughed victoriously as he tossed me over his shoulder. I struggled to get free but it was no use. I sighed in annoyance as I bumped against his back. So it was going to be one of those days.

All of a sudden, something flew right above my head and right through the net! I gasped in shock as I felt it give way and begin to fall! I quickly flew away from Skulker just as he turned around and noticed my absence.

"How did you get out?" he demanded as he readied himself for yet another round of missiles.

"I didn't do it!" I cried.

"Then who did? An invisible man?"

"Actually, that was me," a feminine voice called.

We turned around and saw a girl fly up to us. She was wearing a purplish black suit that covered half of her face and had her hand raised, as if waiting for something. Just then the disk came hurtling back and landed right between her fingers!

"Whoa," I whispered, impressed.

"Who are you?" Skulker suddenly questioned, pointing his missiles her way.

"Why do you care? I'm just gonna kick your butt anyways," she responded snidely.

Skulker growled as he began to attack. I watched in wonder as she gracefully dodged every shot and basically somersaulted over to him and sent a powerful kick right into his jaw! He screamed as he flew through the air. Then, she began firing some type of purple ray at him over and over! Once she was finished, most of his suit had been blast away, and you could see the pitiful little green blob. Then, she effortlessly pulled out a thermos and sucked him in.

"One down," she stated as she turned to me and yanked out some type of stick from behind her, "one to go."

She pressed a button on the side and the stick extended to where it was her height and had a spear on the end. She pointed it menacingly at me, prepared for anything.

"No wait! I'm not going to attack you!" I yelled holding up my hands in surrender.

She glared at me for a second and slightly lowered the spear.

"What do you mean? You're a ghost and they're evil. It's my job to hunt them," she hissed.

"Wait, so you're not a ghost?" I asked.

"Uh, no," she responded as if it were obvious.

"Then how do you have ghost powers?" I demanded.

"I have my secrets. Now, what do you mean you won't attack?" she quizzed suspiciously

"Just that! I'm a good guy! Not all ghosts are evil," I explained.

Her eyes narrowed as she took me in.

SPOV

My eyes narrowed as I looked him up and down. He didn't seem like a threat with his messy white hair and kind smile. He wore a black and white hazmat suit with some kind of symbol in the middle. You could see slight, but nicely toned muscles through the fabric of the suit. And his eyes were a bright green and sparkled slightly… Then, suddenly my mind blanked as a vision of two people flashed inside my head. It was really blurry, and a lot of the colors were dull and ran together, so I couldn't tell who the people were. They were standing outside and talking.

"What's this for?" the girl questioned as she held up an object.

"I'm…glad you're okay," the boy responded.

They both smiled and leaned into each other…and then the vision ended.

I blinked several times in confusion. What was that? I shook it off though and looked back up to the ghost in question. My eyes made contact with his yet again and I felt something inside me grow warm. They looked…so familiar. It was as if I had seen them hundreds of times and loved every second of it.

"W-who are you?" I stuttered in confusion.

"I'm Danny. Danny Phantom. Not to be confused with Ghost Boy or Inviso Bill," he replied, unaware of my little episode.

"Oh and just what are you to this town?" I questioned.

"I protect it. So what do you say? Truce?" he held out his hand.

"Truce," I agreed, a little unsure, as I accepted his hand and shook it lightly.

"So who are you?" he suddenly asked.

"Names Shadow," I said as I began flying away.

DPOV

I landed on the ground in a daze and changed back to normal. What had just happened?

"Dude! Who was that?" Tucker bombarded me.

"Shadow. She's a ghost hunter, that I made a truce with," I responded, still trying to understand everything.

"Well she's got some awesome stuff…"

"I know…"

We walked off in silence. Who was she? Where did she come from? I mentally added those questions to my ever growing list of mysteries as I pondered over all of this.

"Do you think she has something to do with Sam?" Tucker suddenly asked.

"I don't know…" I murmured, "but I'm going to find out.


	4. Chapter 4

**And here is chapter 3! Enjoy it!**

**I don't own Danny Phantom**

Chapter 3

~ The Next Day ~

SPOV

I groaned groggily as my eyes opened from my deep sleep. I sat up and stretched, trying to overcome a yawn, and then hastily got out of the bed only to feel my head sway and a slight spell of nausea hit. I placed my hand on my stomach in confusion as the feeling settled.

Was I sick? How did I possibly get sick?

Once I was sure the feeling had passed, I carefully walked to the bathroom and checked my reflection. Nothing looked too out of place. My hair was disheveled from sleep and my eyes still looked drowsy. Nothing unordinary, so I shrugged it off and began getting ready for another day of ghost hunting. Maybe I would run into Danny again… For some reason that idea made me smile slightly.

What was going on?

Ever since I had met Danny, I've felt different; before my mind felt blank, but now it felt…cloudy. As if there was something there. He had done this to me, and I was determined to find out why.

NPOV

"The weakness should be kicking in about now…" the female stated proudly.

"And how long will it take until it overwhelms her completely?" her partner quizzed.

"It's a slow process. She'll grow weaker every day, especially since she's become so active thanks to your ghost hunting idea. I'll estimate around a week before she dies," her voice smooth as silk, devoid of any care, "Though the boy could complicate things. She's probably already starting to have flashes of old memories."

"You said yourself, it would take a miracle. But, what memories is she recalling?"

"I don't know. It could be any memory from any time. All I can tell you is that they're probably really blurry and dim, at least for now. Over time they will gradually grow clearer, especially if she sees something or someone she recognizes…"

"How long do you expect it would take?"

"At the rate she's going, it could only take about a week for her to remember; of course it would be too late, unless the boy can save her."

"Doubtful. I've been inside of his mind, and he's hopelessly clueless."

"Well then, I suppose the odds are in our favor," she sighed as she drifted to look down at the peacefully sleeping soul without an ounce of sympathy.

DPOV

I sighed as I looked down at the limp spaghetti on my fork.

"What's wrong?" Tucker mumbled through a mouthful of his own food.

"Not hungry," I stated, shoving my tray away from me.

"You're thinking about Sam and Shadow aren't you?"

"Yes. It's just that Shadow seemed so familiar..."

"What? You think she's Sam in disguise?"

"I don't know. I just have this feeling that she's the key in finding Sam."

Tucker opened his mouth, about to say something, but was cut off by a high pitched voice talking loudly a few tables away.

"Like, can you believe they still haven't found little miss pale, dark, and freaky?" Paulina stated to her crew of jocks and drama queens.

"Maybe she doesn't want to be found," Star suggested mysteriously.

"What do you mean by that?" Kwan questioned curiously.

"I mean like, what if she, you know, just ran off? I mean, if you think about it, it's the perfect crime. Poor thing all alone in the world decides to bail and make it look like foul play…"

"Where did you come up with something as ridiculous as that?" Paulina scoffed, wrinkling her nose.

"Lifetime. Happens all the time on there."

"Well, I heard that it's all for show, like her parents paid the cops to search and all that stuff and it's all just a big publicity stunt!" Dash exclaimed wildly.

"Please, like she has the money to pull that off," Paulina disagreed, "I think she just hit the ground too hard on that unfortunate fall she had and just forgot everything and wandered off."

I shook my head in disgust at the conversation. Honestly, did Paulina ever know when to stop? I knew that she knew that I was right there and was perfectly able to hear every word that left her mouth. Sam was right. She really was a shallow little witch.

"I'll tell you something. I've heard the rumor about Sam's parents paying for the whole thing and passing it off for a publicity stunt and it's just insane. They couldn't possibly act that well," Tucker said.

"I know. The other day they saw me walking home and asked me if I was alright! They hate me!" I cried.

"Man, Sam would never believe this," Tucker sighed shaking his head.

"Believe what the buffoons are saying about her, or that her parents are insanely worried about her?"

"Parents, definitely parents. If she were here she'd be rolling her eyes and mumbling some nonsense about how predictable the 'prissy squad' was being," Tucker chuckled, using air quotes around Sam's nickname for Paulina's group.

"True," I agreed with a weak smile.

Tucker nodded slowly as he continued with his meal. I just looked down at the table and tried to piece things together. There was some connection between Sam and Shadow. I could feel it. The only question: what was it?

SPOV

"You seem distracted!" I called to Danny as we flew through the air, after some ghost who called himself Technus.

"Just thinking!" he shouted back.

I narrowed my eyes in thought. What was he thinking about? And better yet, why did I care?

I shrugged my shoulders and stopped once we had cornered Technus at a building.

"Please children, do you honestly think you're a match for me? Your technology is no use against mine, for I am Technus—" he continued to droll on and on.

"Are all the ghosts around here this full of themselves?" I asked Danny.

"Now you understand what I go through," he replied dryly.

"Are you even listening to me?" Technus suddenly shouted.

We looked back at him and shook our heads.

"So rude," he muttered before trying to attack us.

I lunged away and whipped out my disks and hurled them at him one by one. They circled around his computer suit—or whatever you'd call that hunk of junk—and sliced it open before he could even blink. The disks returned to me and I quickly had my spear in hand and in position as the suit crumbled to the ground.

Technus looked around wildly as he noticed the absence of his armor and quickly began firing off ecto beams at me! My eyes widened as I tried to dodge the oncoming threats, but they were just so fast! One slammed into my stomach, and knocked the air out of me! I gasped on what air I could get in as I tried to send a beam his way, but before I could, another one of his flew into me and sent me flying to the ground! I landed with a loud thud and a groan.

"Are you okay?" someone suddenly asked as they began helping me to my feet.

I looked up and noticed that it was Tucker, Danny's sidekick I guess. I wasn't sure what he was honestly. All I knew was that he hung around Danny all the time and helped him fight ghosts.

"Yeah thanks. Now, if you'll excuse me," I said as I turned to fly back up only to have his hand reach out and keep me in place.

"I think Danny's got this," he explained pointing upwards.

I looked up at the battle that was waging above and was honestly shocked by what happened. Danny began putting off an eerie blue glow, and suddenly blue beams shot out of his eyes and right into Technus! The bewildered ghost only had time to squeak in shock until he was frozen into a block of ice! Then Danny whipped out his thermos and sucked him in.

"What was that?" I demanded once he had joined Tucker and me on the ground.

"Ice," he explained raising his hand and forming a small ice crystal and offered it to me.

I took it carefully and gasped when a picture of my vision from before flashed inside my head. It was the object that the girl had held up! I quickly jumped back and dropped it as if it had burned me, which in a since it had.

"What's wrong?" Danny asked with concern.

"Nothing. Just startled," I muttered.

"Oookay…" Tucker trailed off awkwardly.

I bit my lip as I considered what was going on. Could Danny have been the boy in my vision? If he was, then who was the girl? And what did it have to do with me? Suddenly, my questions were interrupted by a fit of nasty coughing that just exploded from my chest. Danny quickly began thumping me on the back trying to help, and once it passed he looked at me nervously.

"Are you okay?"

"I don't know," I answered honestly.

Was I?


	5. Chapter 5

**Well, here is chapter 4! Nothing exciting really happening in this one... But Danny comes to a rather interesting conclusion at the end... Anyways, I seriously hope you enjoy this and chapter 5 will be up ASAP! And I appreciate you waiting the past few days! **

**I do not own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 4

~ 2 Days Later~

DPOV

"I'm telling you man! I don't know where she is!" Johnny exclaimed as I slammed him up against one of the multiple doors in the Ghost Zone.

"I don't believe you! It was your fault she fell in the first place!" I spat.

I had been in the Ghost Zone seeing if Sam was anywhere to be found and had ran into Johnny, who I hadn't seen since the incident. So, naturally I decided to figure out if he knew something.

"What? Dude, I left before she even fell! My plan was to get out while your hands were full. I never really meant for her to fall," he shrugged nervously.

I gaze hardened as I stared into his eyes looking for any sign of a lie. There was none. Reluctantly, I pulled away and pushed his aside with disgust. Then, without a word I flew back to the portal and came out in the lab. I quickly changed back and shut the portal doors and left before my parents could see me. I kept my eyes on the floor as I mentally crossed off locations where Sam wasn't.

"Oh hey Danny," Jazz suddenly said from her place at the kitchen table.

I looked up and gave her a weak smile in return.

"Where've you been?"

"Nowhere…" I lied.

"Okay Danny, don't tell me, but if you want to talk, you know I'm here," she told me.

"I know," I said before leaving the room and house all together.

I had to get out. I had to clear my head. So I naturally decided to go flying.

Once I was up in the air, high enough so people couldn't see me, I began to slowly let Sam fade from my mind, at least for a little while. She was replaced by Shadow. I didn't know what it was, but I just felt like I had known her all my life. If I wasn't thinking about Sam, I was thinking about Shadow. It was really confusing. My heart ached for Sam and fluttered at the thought of Shadow. I didn't know what I felt anymore.

SPOV

I was slowly feeling worse. I didn't know what it was, but I would just randomly feel sick and dizzy and just begin coughing. I was honestly worried. I had no idea what was happening to me. I was more worried, however, by the thoughts I'd been having about Danny. I couldn't understand why, but I seemed to have had a soft spot for him, though I didn't voice this out loud, and it was like I knew him from somewhere.

My thoughts flashed back to the blurry vision I had, as I painstakingly tried to see past the blurred colors and make out the faces behind them. The only thing I could really make out was that if it was me and Danny, we were a few years younger. The girl had a black blob around her head, which I guessed was her hair and the boy had a white blob around his head, and I guessed the same for him. Really the only thing that was clear was the ice crystal that the girl held that was similar to the one Danny had made.

I groaned as I placed my head in my hands in frustration. Why couldn't I figure this out? Why did I have to lose my memory? None of it made since!

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by multiple screams. I jumped up and ran to the window, where I could see a ghost flying around causing mayhem. I sighed impatiently as I clicked the button on my bracelet, unleashing Shadow once again.

I arrived at the same time as Danny annoyingly enough.

"Good timing," he called, smirking slightly.

"Yeah, it's like we can read each other's minds," I shouted back sarcastically.

"Well, well, well, look at that. Dipstick got himself a new girlfriend," a chilling voice hissed.

I looked up to see a girl ghost floating above us. Her fiery, blue hair swirled around her creating dramatic flames.

"Cut the crap Ember," Danny growled.

"Oooh, feisty are we?" her leering grin stretched across her white skin tauntingly.

Danny's teeth clenched together as he sent her a vicious glare. I'm guessing they're relationship isn't exactly peachy.

"What do you want?" I finally demanded, matching her glare with one of my own.

"Hmm, now that is a tough one… World domination? The destruction of all things adult? Power beyond anything you could ever begin to comprehend? You could pick any of those three really," she cackled.

"Yeah, well I'm afraid I can't let that happen," I stated with a slight sneer.

"You know, you seem tense. Maybe a little music will calm you down!" she roared as she whipped out a guitar and strummed a chord.

A green wave flew out and formed itself into a fist. It plowed into me and sent me flying. I could hear her laughter cut off by annoyed grunts and looked back over to see Danny fighting her.

Hastily, I flew back to the action and began fighting right alongside him. It felt routine now, like I had been doing it for most of my life. It was like we knew what the other was going to do next, and honestly, it scared the heck out of me.

"Shadow look out!" Danny suddenly called.

I whirled around to face him only to see Ember strum one last chord, before Danny sucked her into the thermos. The familiar green wave shot out and came straight at me! It hit harder than the last one, and sent me hurtling to the ground. I shut my eyes in terror as I clawed at the air, desperately trying to find something to grab on to. We were much higher up that last time and there was nothing to break my fall.

Then, I stopped. I slowly opened my eyes to meet Danny's worried gaze. I looked down and saw that he had caught me and was holding me bridal style.

"Are you okay?" he asked looking me over as he descended to the ground.

"Yeah. Thanks," I said gratefully.

"Anytime," he shrugged as he set me on the ground.

My hand pressed onto his chest as I made sure I wasn't going to fall when I saw it. The symbol on his chest I hadn't paid any attention to before. I suddenly froze as another fuzzy vision presented itself inside my head.

"What is that?" the boy with white hair quizzed as he pointed to the emblem on his chest, which was the only thing that was clear.

His emblem matched Danny's perfectly!

"Just trust me, okay," the girl with black hair responded confidently placing her hand on his chest with a smile.

I blinked in surprise when it was over and I looked around to see Danny looking at me weirdly.

"Uhh, you can let go now," he informed me, motioning to my hand.

"Huh? Oh sorry, I just sort of blanked…"

"Okay then."

"Sooo, what exactly is the history between you and our latest catch?" I asked awkwardly.

"Who? Ember?"

I nodded.

"Oh well, she's just caused a lot of problems between me and my best friend…" he explained.

"Tucker?" I stated dumbly.

"No," he chuckled, "my other best friend. Sam."

"Sam?" something about the name felt familiar, but I just couldn't figure out how.

"Yeah…"

"So why haven't I seen her?"

"Oh, well, she's, err, missing…" he mumbled sadly.

"Oh… I'm sorry," I said, feeling like an idiot.

"It's not your fault. Listen, I've got to go… See you," he said before flying off.

I stood there staring at his retreating form. It was now obvious that Danny had to have been the boy in the visions. But how did he relate to my past? And why did this mysterious Sam seem to raise even more questions?

DPOV

"So what? You like Shadow now?" Tucker asked as he kept his eyes glued to the TV screen.

"I don't know…" I sighed.

"So you like Sam?" he prodded.

"I don't know! I just… I don't know!" I cried.

"Whoa! Dude! Calm down!"

"Sorry, it's just… Do you think I could possibly like them both?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay! I'm back with chapter 5! Sorry it took awhile but things have been kind of crazy. So thanks for being patient and enjoy! **

**I don't own Danny Phantom!**

Chapter 5

~ The Next Day ~

SPOV

The school bell rang, signaling the end of yet another school day. Hastily, I ducked behind some bushes next to the entrance, and waited for my target. Teens began pooling out of the doors and scrambled into different directions. Almost everyone was gone when I saw who I was looking for. Tucker. He was walking outside with a boy that I had never seen before. The boy had black hair, styled a lot like Danny's and he looked around Danny's height and even seemed to have his build. I was too far away to see his eyes though.

"Maybe you should talk to Jazz about it," Tucker suddenly stated, talking to the boy.

"Tuck, I don't know if I can…" he mumbled sadly.

"What are you talking about? Jazz is great! If anyone can help you figure it out, it's her!" Tucker exclaimed.

"Geez Tuck if I didn't know any better, I'd say that you had a crush on my sister," the boy joked.

"Heh, that's ridiculous… Oh! I forgot my math book, I'll meet you later, Danny," Tucker said backing up into the building once again.

Huh, so this boy's name was Danny too? Interesting.

The boy shrugged and waved before he left. I quickly took my chance and raced inside the building. It didn't take me long to find Tucker at a locker digging through books, paper, and electronics.

"Hello Tucker," I said.

He jumped in surprise, dropping a handful of papers on the floor. He looked up in annoyance, only to do a double take when he saw it was me.

"Shadow?" he asked in confusion.

"The one and only," I responded bending down to help him pick up his papers.

"Uh, not that I'm not thrilled to see you or anything, but what are you doing here?" he quizzed.

"I'm here to get some answers."

"What do you want to know exactly?"

"I want to know who Sam is."

He froze and looked at me like I was crazy.

"Why do you want to know about Sam?" he demanded suspiciously.

"I have reasons. Just tell me a few things about her," I insisted.

"Sam was my and Danny's best friend. She liked Danny and Danny liked her, but they refused to tell each other because they both thought that the other wouldn't return the feelings. It's really quite tragic if you think about it… Anyways, she helped us fight ghosts and then a few weeks ago she went missing. We have no idea what happened. It was like she vanished into thin air. And Danny is obsessed with finding her."

The information he gave me didn't really help very much.

"Is there anything else important between her and Danny?" I asked.

"I wouldn't put much thought on this, but it had always seemed like she and Danny had some sort of link," Tucker explained.

"Link?"

"Yeah, like they were connected. They always seemed to know what the other was thinking or if they were in trouble. That sort of thing, and don't get me started on how they fought ghosts. They fought like they had been training together since birth."

My eyes widened. Danny seemed to have the same kind of reaction around her like around me. This was just getting even more confusing by the minute.

"That help?" Tucker said, interrupting my train of thought.

"Huh? Oh yeah, thanks," I mumbled, before leaving the school and flying back to my motel room.

DPOV

I looked across the table and watched as Jazz took a bite out of her apple and flipped a page in her phycology book.

Maybe Tuck was right. Maybe Jazz could help me with my problem.

"Hey Jazz?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"Yeah?" she sighed, looking up from her book.

"Could you help me with a problem I've been having?"

"Sure Danny," she stated, smiling brightly.

"Okay well, there's this girl I met a few days ago. She's a ghost hunter named Shadow, and she's a lot like Sam. And I can't get her out of my head, but I can't get Sam out of my head either! And I also feel like I have a connection with her, you know like I have with Sam? And I'm just so confused! I mean am I falling for Shadow too?"

Jazz sat there in silence, pondering over what I just said. She tapped her fingers on the table as she looked me over carefully. Finally, after was seemed like hours she spoke.

"I think that you could be using all these similarities to Sam as an excuse to feel the void that Sam had left. I mean, you could actually like her, but I can't tell you that. You need to sort your feelings out yourself. I'm sorry, but that's all I can really help you with," she sighed, moving next to me and placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Okay, thanks Jazz," I said before getting up and heading out the door.

SPOV

"So remind me, who's this guy again?" I called out to Danny as I dodged a ghost ray.

"Actually, it's a girl," he yelled back.

I looked up at the ginormous blob of meat in disgust.

"Really?"

"Yeah, call her the Lunch Lady!"

"Whatever," I shrugged before blasting her with a huge ball of energy.

I was satisfied to see her explode and meat fly everywhere, but the satisfaction was short lived. My vision blurred slightly and nausea built up in my stomach. A series of coughs left my mouth.

"You okay?" Danny murmured next to me.

I looked up in surprise, not having realized that he'd flown over to me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied.

He looked doubtful, and opened his mouth to respond when an elderly looking ghost flew in front of us.

"Oh sweetie, you look sick. Would you like a nice bowl of soup?" she asked kindly.

"Is that the Lunch Lady?" I whispered.

Danny nodded.

"Should I take it?" I whispered again.

Danny shook his head.

I shook my head, and suddenly her kind expression twisted into one of anger.

"THEN TASTE MY WRATH!" she screamed.

A giant turkey leg appeared in her hands and she wacked Danny with it! I watched in horror as he hit the ground, hard. Suddenly I exploded with rage and began hitting her with everything I had, regardless of how sick it made me feel. Eventually, she crumbled and I sucked her up in my thermos.

Without a second thought, I flew down towards Danny and looked at him with worry.

"Shadow, help me move him into that alley," Tucker instructed urgently.

I nodded and helped him pick Danny up, and together we moved him into the alley. And for some reason, the whole thing felt really familiar. We sat him down and suddenly, two glowing hoops appeared in the middle of his body and began traveling in opposite directions. I watched in shock as they left him in blue jeans and a regular t-shirt and black hair. It was the Danny Tucker was talking to earlier! Suddenly, his eyes opened, revealing that they were a pretty ocean blue.

The familiar feeling of another vision presented itself. This time it was of the same two blurry people as always, but they were kissing. And the rings formed around the boy and turned him into one with black hair. They pulled apart and looked at each other.

"I call that a fake out make out," the boy stated.

"Yeah, I know," the girl replied, blushing.

The vision disappeared and I was staring back at the, now standing, black haired Danny. He looked at me nervously.

"What the crap just happened?" I cried.

Danny sighed and looked ready to kill himself.

"My name is Danny Fenton, and I'm a half ghost."


	7. Chapter 7

**And here is chapter 6, and things start picking up in this chapter! It shouldn't be boring anymore, I promise! So enjoy this one, and chapter 7 will be up ASAP! **

**I do not own Danny Phantom!**

Chapter 6

~ Same Day ~

SPOV

"You're a what?" I demanded looking him in his, now blue, eyes.

"A half ghost or even a halfa as some ghosts say, either way I'm half human and half ghost," he explained.

"How did you get this way?" I asked, still in shock over this surprising fact.

Tucker shifted nervously next to me, and looked at the ground.

"My parents are ghost hunters, and they built a ghost portal that leads to the Ghost Zone. It didn't work, so they just kind of quit. I brought Tucker and…Sam…down to see it, and Sam sort of got me to go in to check it out. So I threw on a jumpsuit and walked in. About halfway through I hit a button on the wall and it came on. It shocked me and I woke up as a ghost," Danny said.

"Wow. So is it like some big secret?"

"Yep. Only Tucker, Sam, and my sister know."

"Why keep it secret?" I questioned, puzzled.

"It'll just cause more problems if people find out, believe me. It's my parents' goal to catch Danny Phantom and 'rip him apart molecule by molecule'."

"Huh, well okay then."

"So you'll keep the secret?" he asked clutching my arm.

"Yeah…who would I tell anyways?" I responded yanking my arm back, ignoring the tingly feeling his hands left.

"Thank you," he breathed in relief.

I smiled slightly as I took in his happiness. God, what was he doing to me? We all stood there awkwardly glancing around, when I decided to speak.

"Umm, well I have—"

"To go?" Danny finished for me.

"Stop that," I snapped, glaring at him.

He just grinned cheekily at me. I rolled my eyes and flew away.

DPOV

"Dude, were you just flirting?" Tucker asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What? No!" I exclaimed.

"Oookay… So did you ever talk to Jazz?"

"Yes I did, actually."

"And?"

"She didn't really help any. She said I have to figure out my feelings on my own…" I trailed off in thought.

"Oh. Well just don't do anything stupid Danny," Tucker warned before leaving me alone in the alley.

I sighed and began walking home, trying to sort out everything. Why did this have to be so hard? Why did this have to happen to me? So many good questions and absolutely no answers. I mean I liked Sam and I liked Shadow. I knew that much, but the real question was why. Why did I like Shadow? For God's sake I didn't even know who she was, yet I was just drawn to her.

I groaned in frustration. I had to do something. I had to know if she felt anything about me. I was ninety-nine percent sure that she did and that she noticed the connection—or whatever it was—between us too. I just had to get her attention. This just wasn't something you could go up and ask someone about, especially someone like Shadow.

I climbed up the porch stairs and went inside and up to my room. It was going to be a long night.

SPOV

I lay in bed, coughing my lungs out. I felt so weird. It was like I was drained. I moaned in discomfort as I turned to my side, trying to ease away some of the nausea. I clutched my stomach in pain, as sweat formed on my forehead.

"What's happening to me?" I whispered.

It wasn't until around three in the morning until I finally drifted to sleep.

NPOV

"She's weak. It could be any day now…" a confident voice hissed.

"Perfect. Things are going just as planned," her partner stated.

"When do we strike?" she asked.

"Patience, dear one, we will get our chance. It'll all come together in the end, and the boy will finally be gone."

"I do hope you're right."

"You doubt me?"

"No. I fear that the boy might catch on."

"When pigs fly, now if you'll excuse me, I feel the need to harvest," he murmured hungrily.

The ghost turned and watched as her partner entered his chamber and slept, feeding on the dreams of the soul, who just lay there locked in her own little world unaware of the horrors just around the corner.

SPOV

Sunlight streamed in through the blinds on my window, invading the darkness. I grumbled sleepily, and tried to burrow under the covers, but it was no use. I felt too sick to go back to sleep.

I sighed and stumbled out of bed to the bathroom, only to gasp in horror at my reflection. I definitely looked sick. My already pale skin looked even paler, almost translucent looking and I had dark circles surrounding my eyes, making them look like they had sunk into my skull.

"This is not good," I muttered, carefully pressing a hand to my face.

DPOV

I ran downstairs with a smile on my face.

"Danny? You're smiling! What's happened?" Mom asked eagerly, probably hoping for news on Sam.

Jazz and Dad looked up hopefully, but I shook my head. They deflated and shared a worried look.

"No Mom, it's not about Sam. I just kind of hit a stroke of inspiration last night," I said, shoveling cereal into my mouth.

"Inspiration for what sweetie?" she questioned curiously.

"Just the possible answer to a question that's been bothering me lately."

Jazz looked up in surprise and I winked at her, letting her know it was about what she thought.

"Well, that's great son. Maddie! I need more fudge!" Dad said.

I chuckled to myself and headed out the door, on my way to school.

"Danny! Wait up!" Tucker called from behind.

I turned and waited. He caught up and gave me a suspicious look.

"You look oddly happy for once… Anything I should know about?" he asked dryly.

"Just an idea on how to settle this thing between me and Shadow," I replied.

"You going to tell me what it is?"

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"You'll try to talk me out of it."  
"It's something stupid isn't it? Danny! Whatever it is, please don't do it! You'll regret it in the long run!"

"Sorry Tuck, but this is the only thing I could think of to clear this mess up."

"Well, if I can't talk you out of it, then good luck," Tucker sighed.

SPOV (several hours later)

"Nice fighting partner," I joked lightly punching Danny in the arm.

It was dark, probably around nine or ten and we had just gotten done fighting yet another ghost. It seemed that there was never a break for this town.

"Thanks. You weren't so bad yourself," he laughed.

I tried to fight a smile, but it was no use. I just couldn't control myself around him, and I hated it!

"So err, where's Tucker?" I asked, silently enjoying the alone time.

"Oh he's getting my sister's help to study for his big health final that's coming up soon."

"Ah," I nodded.

We walked on in silence, and I worked on trying to hide my sickness. Danny had yet to notice, and I was glad. I didn't need him trying to figure out what was wrong with me. Actually, what I needed from him was to get away from me so I could think straight again!

"Wait!" Danny suddenly cried, grabbing my hand and turning me to face him.

"What—" the words died on my lips when I saw the look in his eyes.

It was a different look. Not the one full of friendliness that I was so accustomed too. His eyes looked slightly cloudy, but clear, and I swear the light blue color was getting darker by the minute.

"Stay still," he whispered as his hand ghosted up my arm, to the edge of my face mask.

I gulped, terrified. I had no idea what was going to happen, but I knew that it was something that would change everything.

My eyes followed his fingers as they trailed to where my lips were protruding slightly from the mask. My breath caught in my throat.

His hand finally decided to rest fully on my cheek, and he slowly started leaning in my direction. I froze stiff as his lips brushed mine, the fabric of the mask the only thing between us. In that moment I forgot everything: my confusing questions, the mystery of my identity, my strange illness…just everything. It was like it just melted away, and left me there blissfully floating on air. And then he pulled away, and reality came crashing back down, almost suffocating me. My vision came back into focus, and I saw him looking at me expectantly.

"Well?" he asked.

I stood there, still in too much shock to really do anything, except to try and figure out what had just happened. What had just happened? He had kissed me… He kissed me! Suddenly rage burned through me and mixed in with the fear churning in my stomach. How dare he do that to me? Doesn't he know how confused he makes me? Doesn't he know what I'm dealing with?

"What the crap was that?" I demanded harshly, backing away from him.

"What do you mean?" he asked dumbly.

"Why did you just kiss me?" I hissed.

"I wanted to figure something out. There's something between us, and it scares the crap out of me, but I know that there's something there!"

"No, there's not," I said, trying to keep my control.

"Quit denying it!" he shouted, starting to get angry, "There's something there and you feel it too!"

"No."

"It's like we know each other; like we've met before. And we know what the other is thinking, like we have some kind of link. I've only felt this way about one other person and she's gone!" he cried, eyes glistening with unshed tears.

He was right. It did feel like that, but I was too afraid to admit it.

"Danny, there's nothing between us. I don't feel anything," I whispered before flying off, my own tears running down my cheeks.


	8. Chapter 8

**7's here! Yay! Okay so let me just say thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed! It means a lot, and I'm just happy that you like this story so far! Okay, so enjoy this chapter! I don't own Danny Phantom!**

Chapter 7

~ Later That Night ~

SPOV

_"Ah, who cares? The DJ's still playing, and I think there's time for one last dance," a girl with short black hair and amethyst eyes said._

_ She looked about fourteen and was talking to a boy with messy black hair and blue eyes who also looked fourteen._

_ "Sure, I'd love too," he responded with a smile as he took her hand and led her to the dance floor._

_ The image changed to a different scene with the same girl, but the boy had white hair and green eyes now. The boy was floating next to her in panic, and she looked at him in worry._

_ "Sam, hide!" he yelled, throwing his hands in the air._

_ "No time!" she exclaimed, jumping on top of him, and causing them to land in the bushes._

_ Suddenly, a girl decked out in ghost hunting gear showed up on a hover board._

_ "No escaping me now, ghost boy!" she shouted as she looked down, only to see the girl and the boy—now with black hair—kissing._

_ "Ahh! Do you mind?" the girl demanded angrily._

_ The scene changed again to show the two teens again, but with another boy wearing a red beret. _

_ "He's not my boyfriend. I dumped his as soon as I found out you were right about him being a phoney. Apparently, that is the only way a guy could like me," the girl sighed sadly._

_ "That's not true," beret boy said._

_ "That's totally not true! There's a million reasons why a guy could like you. I mean, you're smart, you're fun, you're cool, you're pretty—" the other boy said, but caught himself at the last minute._

_ The girl smiled slightly as a warm red graced her cheeks._

_ "Why am I still talking? I am such a spazz. Still friends?" the boy quickly chirped._

_ "Pssh. The best," the girl replied._

_ The scenes kept changing, and slowly the people aged along with them. And in the middle of it all, there were flashes of the girl lying on a pile of mattresses sleeping, only something was off. She was flickering._

_Another vision presented itself. Now they looked around eighteen, and they were at a party for the girl._

_ "Happy birthday Sam!" the boy exclaimed, holding out a nicely wrapped box._

_ "What's this?" she asked with a smirk, taking it from him and shaking it lightly._

_ "Open it and find out!" he laughed._

_ She rolled her eyes and ripped through the paper and tore the lid off the box. She looked inside, perplexed, and pulled out a purple and black backpack._

_ "Uh, thanks?" she muttered looking at it as if it was some kind of joke._

_ "There's more," he stated as he pressed a button on the side that made wings pop out, "I know how much you like flying so, I decided to get you your own ride… Not that I don't like being your chauffeur."_

_ "Thanks Danny," she giggled pulling him in for a hug. _

_ And the scene changed yet again to show them sitting in a classroom. Someone was talking on the intercom, but no one was paying attention at least until the person said this:_

_ "And we have the result for your valedictorian and salutatorian. Your salutatorian is Lester Prim and your valedictorian is…Sam Manson. Congratulations," the voice stopped talking leaving the class to talk._

_ The girl sat in her seat with wide eyes, obviously shocked._

_ "Wow Sam, you're valedictorian!" the beret boy cried in surprise._

_ "I know…" she mumbled._

_ "You don't sound thrilled," the other boy noted._

_ "I'm just shocked. I mean who would've thought that I would get this?" she asked._

_ "I would have," the boy replied, causing her to blush._

_ "Lovebirds…" beret boy muttered, earning a glare from the other two._

_ The girl on the mattresses appeared again, but her eyes were open and her face was twisted in a soundless scream, and then she was gone. She just disappeared! Green smoke flooded the room and evil laughter filled the air._

I bolted up out of bed gasping. Sweat soaked my clothes and my heart was beating like I had just run a marathon.

"It was just a dream…" I whispered, "A dream full of more visions…"

I sat there and pondered over them in thought. The boys were obviously Tucker and Danny, but the girl was still a mystery. Someone named Sam Manson…

I bit my lip in frustration as I ripped the blanket away from me and quickly pressed the button on my bracelet, changing into Shadow. I flew from the motel to the library that wasn't far from where Danny had kissed me. I landed in front of the doors, only to see that the closed sign hanging.

Guiltily, I turned intangible and went through the doors. Once I was safely inside, I made my way to the computers that sat along the back wall. I quickly turned one on and got on the search engine. I typed in 'Sam Manson' and skimmed through the information that appeared.

I clicked on a link that said: **Missing in Action: Sam Manson, Amity Park, Minnesota. ** A picture of her popped up and I gasped in shock. She looked just like me! I quickly skimmed through the article and discovered that this was the friend that Danny was talking about.

"So my visions center on Danny and his two friends, one of which looks just like me… I guess I could be her, but nothing's clicking…" I murmured.

I looked back to the article and found her address. I memorized it, shut the computer down, and left the library, heading for Sam's.

When I got to Sam's, I peeked in the windows one by one, trying to find her room. I got to one set on the second floor and saw that it was a vacant bedroom. It looked promising, so I went intangible and flew in. I landed on the floor softly and began looking around trying to decide where to start when I heard voices downstairs.

I silently eased the door open and listened in to the conversation.

"Mr. and Mrs. Manson, the truth of the matter is that your daughter has been missing for several weeks now. We haven't been able to find anything and I just can't waste any more time on it. I will keep an eye out for clues, but we don't have anything to go on right now," a gruff voice explained calmly.

"Of course officer, we understand…" a male voice—Mr. Manson I guessed—said sadly.

"We get cases like this often, and most of the time they're just runaways, but this shows no sign of that," the officer began again.

"What are you saying?" a female voice—Mrs. Manson obviously—demanded.

"I'm saying that you should just prepare yourselves for the worst," the officer finally said.

"Oh Jeremy!" Mrs. Manson wailed.

The door shut, but there was no movement.

"Pamela, I'm sure she's fine," Mr. Manson tried to reassure her, but it was obvious he didn't even believe it.

Mrs. Manson just responded with heavy sobbing.

I quietly shut the door back and continued to examine the room. The walls were a dark purple and there was a canopy bed close to the window decked out in black and purple. A desk sat across from that with a bulletin board above it. The desk had various drawers and items cluttering the top, and the board was covered with things too. I moved on to see a closet, dresser with a mirror, a full length mirror, and a bathroom. I had eventually circled back to the bed and saw a small bedside table with a drawer and a few other items on top. I decided to start there.

On top there was a simple reading lamp, a candle, a clock, and some chap stick; nothing interesting there. I opened the drawer to find a novel and a pack of mint flavored gum. I groaned in annoyance and walked over to the desk.

The first thing I saw on the desk was a black picture frame with a picture of Danny, Tucker, and Sam all crowded together trying to get in the picture. Danny had an arm wrapped around Sam's neck, pulling her close and a bright smile on his face. Sam was blushing slightly and had one hand touching his arm and her other arm was propped up on Tucker's shoulder. He was leaning in slightly with his arms crossed.

"Cute picture," I muttered continuing my search.

There was a laptop sitting in the middle of the desk, but that wasn't useful to me. There was a math textbook, a pencil holder, and various other office supplies. I looked up at the bulletin board and saw that it had a calendar in the middle with the days crossed off, but it stopped in the middle of March, it was April 5th now. The calendar was surrounded by random doodles of various things and newspaper articles featuring Danny Phantom.

I moved on to the desk drawers. I opened the first one and pulled out a simple purple notebook and a book that said diary on the front. Jackpot! I opened the notebook first to see pages of doodles and sketches. I even found a page full of symbol designs with the letters D and P. I even saw the symbol that Danny had on his chest. Sam must have designed it. I tossed the notebook aside and opened the diary. It was full of pictures of the three friends, ranging from when they were about fourteen to now. I looked at some of the younger pictures first. One of Danny and Tucker hugging in their sleep, a picture of them dressed up for Halloween, one of Sam angrily holding a hand up to the camera trying to push it away, one of Danny waving in his ghost form, and one of Danny and Sam with their arms awkwardly positioned around each other. They were dressed like they were at a dance and they were blushing deeply. A little heart was doodled in the corner. I remembered how Tucker told me that they liked each other but wouldn't admit it.

I flipped to the newer pictures: one of the three with their arms around each other, one of Danny sticking his tongue out and crossing his eyes, one of Tucker holding up a PDA and smiling happily, and one of Sam and Danny with Danny giving Sam bunny ears.

I growled in frustration. None of this was really helping me much. Nothing was clicking.

I moved on to the dresser and froze when I saw something gold out of the corner of my eye. I looked over and saw one of those little stands that hold necklaces. There were quite a few hanging on the little hooks, but I was focused on the simple chain that held a gold class ring with a turquoise stone. It looked so familiar. I carefully picked it up and examined it in my hand. There wasn't much to it; it was just your basic class ring. I held it up closer to my face and saw that there was something engraved into it.

"Who the heck is Wes?" I asked out loud, looking at it again to make sure I read it right.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps startled me and caused me to drop the ring. It landed on the floor with a clatter. I cursed silently as the footsteps paused outside the door, but breathed in relief when they moved on. I bent down to pick the ring up, and I held it up to read it again and gasped in shock. It said Sam!

It was like my head exploded! Dozens of visions flashed through my mind at once, and it hurt. My hands pressed to the sides of my head and my eyes clenched shut. I dropped to my knees and struggled to breathe. It was like tons of pressure pressing on the inside of my head, and then it stopped.

My eyes slowly opened and I was breathing normally again. I also remembered everything. Including what happened those last few moments in the park.

"Desiree," I spat angrily.

I got up from the floor and held up the ring once again. I shrugged and put it around my neck, unsure if I should part with it yet. Once I was situated, I began thinking about where Desiree could be, because knowing her she probably stuck around to see what chaos her little wish granting brought. And I suddenly thought back to my dream where I saw myself on the mattresses.

"It's worth a shot," I muttered as I went out the window and began flying to the mattress factory, but I just ended up lowering to the ground.

Coughs exploded from my chest and my head spun. My illness had made me too weak to use the chip! I guess I was walking.

DPOV

I glared at my ceiling. Why was I so stupid? What was I thinking? I had kissed Shadow, and it didn't solve a thing! It just made me feel like I had tossed Sam aside, like she didn't exist anymore. I pulled out my wallet and pulled out the picture from Sam's party.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered setting it gently on my nightstand.

I got up and went ghost and flew out the window and heading to Sam's. I went there sometimes to think. It was the place where I could be closest to her. I landed silently across the street turned invisible. The front door was open and light poured out. Sam's parents stood in the door way and a police officer stood on the porch. They were talking, and I made it just in time to catch the end of the conversation.

"I'm saying that you should prepare yourselves for the worst," the officer said.

"Oh Jeremy!" Mrs. Manson cried as she leaned against Mr. Manson and began sobbing uncontrollably.

The officer left and the door closed. They were giving up on Sam! They thought she was dead? Shock spread through me as I took it in. Sam couldn't be dead!

Suddenly, something coming out of Sam's window caught my attention. It was Shadow! What was she doing here? I watched as she began flying, but she just ended up on the ground coughing. Once her cough attack was done, she began walking.

My eyes narrowed as I began following her.


	9. Chapter 9

**And here is chapter 8! Yay we're getting close to the end! I just want to say thanks again for the review and favorites and follows! They mean a lot to me. So enjoy this chapter, and please don't kill me at the end! **

**I don't own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 8

~ Still the Same Night ~

SPOV

I looked up at the building in front of me. The mattress factory. I quietly eased the door open and slipped inside, shutting it behind me. I cautiously scanned the room and gasped when I saw what was in the middle. It was me! I was sleeping on the mattresses, but I was surrounded by some kind of weird glow and I looked kind of faded. Behind that little display was Nocturne's sleep chamber still standing after all these years, but it was fixed!

"Why do I get the feeling that Desiree's not alone in this?" I muttered.

"You'd be correct," a chilling voice hissed behind me.

I whirled around and came face to face with Nocturne's looming form, his face twisted into a menacing glare. I backed up, but hit something behind me. I looked over my shoulder and saw Desiree smirking down at me.

"Going somewhere?" she cackled.

"Give it up, Desiree. I remember everything now," I stated haughtily.

"Oh do you now? I suppose that could be an issue, if it wasn't already too late," she stated mockingly with a hateful grin.

"W-what do you mean?" I stuttered, suddenly a little scared.

"I assume you've been feeling ill lately?" she questioned casually, floating over to Nocturne's side.

"Yes…"

"Feeling drained?"

"Yes…"

"And of course, I'm sure that you've seen yourself sleeping over there?" she pointed across the room.

"What is that? That's not me! I'm right here!"

"Yes you're right here, but only partly. You see that's the half of your soul that contained your memories and your feelings for a certain someone…"

"Y-you ripped out half of my soul?" I stammered.

"Afraid so," she replied with a shrug.

"Why? What's the point?" I interrogated.

"The point is so you'll slowly grow weak and die. And I needed something to help fuel me," Nocturne explained with a nasty grin.

"D-die?" I blanched.

Okay, now I was seriously afraid.

"Yes die. If you die without half a soul, it leaves room in your ghost for someone to take over. We will take over your ghost self and with you under our control, the ghost boy will be defeated! It was an excellent plan. Oh and that suit? I stole it from Vlad to keep you distracted for a while, and it worked better than I thought it would," he boasted.

"How will this effect Danny?" I asked ignoring the part about the suit.

"He could never fight the girl he loves," Nocturne snarled, reaching out and fingering the ring that hung around my neck.

"Loves?" I whispered, recoiling away from him.

"And just think, victory is just minutes away," he sighed happily.

"Minutes?"

"Yes minutes. Your body can't function much longer. Any minute now it'll shut down and you'll be gone," Desiree said.

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" I cried.

I held up my hand and attempted to shoot them with an energy ray, but it didn't work. In order to do that you needed energy and I had none! The ghosts stood there and laughed. Panicked, I clicked the button on my bracelet that formed into a wrist ray. I shot them and caused them to fly backwards, hitting a stack of mattresses. My victory was short lived however; they split up and came at me from both sides. Desiree kept blasting me back and forth and Nocturne was slinging me around like a rag doll, causing my face mask to slide off.

They stopped and Nocturne held me up by one arm, fixing me with an evil grin. I just hung there trying not to pass out. My body hurt everywhere, and I'm pretty sure that there were some broken bones. Desiree suddenly came up from behind and began shocking me with her ghost ray! I shrieked in agony. It was like being stabbed by dozens of white hot knives. It felt like hours until they stopped.

I hung there gasping for air and twitching slightly. My eyes slowly began to droop and my mind began growing hazy. They stood there laughing, but I couldn't hear them. It was like everything had been muted. My eyes shut.

DPOV

I looked up at the mattress factory that Shadow had entered moments before. What was she doing here of all places? I stood there in deep thought, trying to sort this out when an agonized scream came from inside.

"Shadow!" I cried as I burst through the doors.

I froze when I saw the scene before me. Nocturne and Desiree stood there laughing evilly. Nocturne held Shadow up by one arm, but her face mask was gone…

"S-sam?" I stuttered.

Sure enough, the girl hanging limply from Nocturne's grasp was indeed Sam. She was beat up and her suit was ripped, but it was indeed Sam.

"Sam!" I shouted again, gaining the attention of the two ghosts.

"Well look who decided to join the party," Desiree laughed.

"It's about time," Nocturne added, tossing Sam across the room.

She landed about ten feet away from a small stack of mattresses which held…another Sam! What?

"What's going on?" I demanded harshly.

"She wished to forget everything, and she did. Of course, she paid the price. I ripped out half of her soul, and without a full soul the body will eventually burn out and die," Desiree explained.

"And her soul has been fueling me since day one," Nocturne concluded.

"Die? You mean she's dead?" I whispered in shock.

"Not yet, but dangerously close," Desiree replied with a cruel smile.

"And with her gone, she'll be easy to take over. And we all know you'll never fight her, no matter what the circumstances," Nocturne stated.

Rage pooled within me. They had taken advantage of Sam! They had taken her away! And now they were going to kill her and use her against me!

"I. Don't. Think. So," I growled.

Before they had time to react, I lashed out. I began mindlessly throwing attack after attack. I hit Desiree with an ecto ball and sent her flying into the wall. She tried to hit me, but I expertly dodged and hit her with an ice ray, freezing her from the neck down. She howled with rage and used all her energy to bust out of the icy confines, but I was right there waiting with another attack. This went on for a while when I finally managed to suck her into the thermos.

I whirled around to face Nocturne, but he was gone! Suddenly everything in front of me disappeared and an eerie voice appeared in my head.

_Give in… Let your mind take over._

"N-no! I have to save Sam…" I gasped.

_ She is safe…no one will harm her…_

"S-safe?"

_ Give in Danny. Give in… _

My eyes opened to see that I was safe in my house's living room.

"What happened?" I murmured shaking my head.

I looked over and saw that the TV screen was that blue it gets whenever you stop a movie or take it out of the DVD player, and that there was a blanket crumpled up on the couch like someone had been using it.

"Did you pick another movie?" someone asked from behind me.

I jumped in the air in surprise and whirled around to see Sam standing in the doorway to the kitchen holding two cans of soda.

"Movie?" I asked.

"Uh yeah, you know one of those things you watch on TV," she replied sarcastically as she sat the sodas on the table and looked me over. "You okay?"

"I-I think so," I answered, unable to shake this weird feeling I had.

"Good, cause I wasn't ready to go home yet. You do realize that this is the first time we've been completely alone in like forever?" she smirked as her hand tugged lightly on my shirt, pulling me towards her.

"S-sam?"

She chuckled and placed a small kiss on my neck, then my jaw, then the corner of my mouth. I gulped.

"Danny, you're making this too easy for me," she murmured with a light laugh.

I backed up and hit the couch.

"Sam, what's going on? What are you talking about?" I blurted out, holding her at arm's length.

"What's wrong? You're acting like I shouldn't be doing this. I thought this is was couples did," she pouted, slightly annoyed.

"Couples?" I asked, puzzled.

"Yeah. That's what we are. A couple," she responded with an impatient sigh.

My eyes widened. A couple? Sam and I were a couple? When did this happen? How did this happen? I couldn't remember. All I could remember was something about a soul… And that's when it hit me. This was a dream I had!

I quickly shoved the fake Sam away.

"Danny!" she cried out dejectedly.

"I'm sorry, but you're not the real Sam and this isn't real!" I spat.

Suddenly I was back outside my head again staring at a really angry Nocturne.

"You're going to pay for that one! Using my own dreams against me? That's low!" I hissed.

"I find it interesting how you think I care," he snarled lunging for me.

I dodged and began fighting back with everything I had.

"Give it up! You will not win!" he roared.

"Yes I WILL!" I shouted, going into my ghostly wail.

It sent him crashing into his sleep chamber, destroying it. He looked up just in time for me to hold the thermos up to him.

"Goodbye," I said powering it up.

"NOOOOOOOO!" he yelled as it sucked him in.

A small groan distracted me from my victory. I turned around to see Sam coming to on the floor. I rushed over and knelt by her side.

"Sam," I breathed grabbing her hand.

"D-danny?" she mumbled weakly.

"It's okay. They're gone. I'm here," I murmured, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.

"Danny, I'm not going to make it. My soul…" she trailed off.

My eyes widened. I bolted up and ran to the mattresses and looked down. Her soul was flickering! I carefully picked it up and ran back to where Sam lay. I quickly placed the soul on top of her and watched as it fused in with the body, but at the same moment, Sam let out a weak cough and grew still.


	10. Chapter 10

**Whew! One more chapter to go and then this story will be done! Then we can get on with the series! This chapter is a bit dramatic and the characters are a little OOC, but I'm sure with everything that's happened, you'd be OOC too! So review, favorite, follow and what have ya. Hope you like this one!**

**I do not own Danny Phantom!**

Chapter 9

DPOV

"Sam!" I cried lightly shaking her.

She didn't move. Holding my breath, I checked for a pulse, but there was nothing. She was actually gone.

"No," I choked on my own air. "I-it can't be…"

Tears clouded my vision as I pushed the dark strands of hair away from her forehead, only vaguely noticing that she had a cut there. I pulled her close, not caring that I was smearing the blood from her cut all over me.

There were no words for the crushing grief that was overwhelming me. I had failed her. I had let her slip from my grasp again, only this time there was no hope. She was gone. I buried my face in her hair and let the tears fall.

Then a tiny cough startled me out of my grieving. I pulled away and looked down. She was breathing! She was alive! Happiness soared through me, but it was short lived. The reality of the situation set in. She may have had her soul back, but she was not in good condition. In fact, I had no idea what condition she was even in. I laid her back down and began inspecting her. She had cuts everywhere, some that would definitely need stitches, and blood was trickling out. She had a dark bruise forming on her cheek, and her bottom lip was swollen and purple. This was just on the skin I could see. Who knew what damage lay under the suit, or the internal damage! She could have broken bones or internal bleeding! She may not survive after all.

With speed I didn't know I had, I scooped her up and flew to my house. By the time we got there, I was utterly exhausted and weak. It didn't help that I had used my ghostly wail earlier either. I didn't even bother to open the doors. I just went intangible and flew in.

"Help!" I shouted out. "I need help!"

"Danny?" Jazz yawned from the living room.

I stumbled in and saw Jazz rubbing sleep from her eyes on the couch and Tucker stretching.

"What time is it? We must have fall asleep—oh my God! Danny what happened?" Tucker exclaimed as he took in the sight of me carrying Sam.

"Danny! You're smeared with blood! Who are you carrying?" Jazz asked worriedly.

Sam's face was tucked against my chest, and hard to see.

"I'll explain later, just go get Mom and Dad!" I barked. "Tuck, come with me."

We hurried to the lab and I placed Sam on the table. Tucker's breath caught when he saw who it was.

"Danny is that Sam?" he asked quietly.

"Yes. And it's also Shadow. It's actually a really funny story that I'll explain when I can be sure she's going to be okay!"

Suddenly footsteps pounded down the stairs as my parents came into the lab, ready for a ghost attack. They froze when they saw the scene before them. An unconscious Sam bleeding everywhere, a shocked Tucker, and me in Phantom form smeared with Sam's blood. Crap.

"Freeze Phantom!" they exclaimed aiming their ghost weaponry straight at me.

It was then that the full weight of my exhaustion dawned on me. If I got in a fight with them I'll lose. I was too weak from flying so fast and using that darn wail. So, I did the most logical thing possible. I fainted.

~ A Few Moments Later ~

"Danny! Danny wake up!" my mom called.

My eyes opened and I looked up to see Tucker, Jazz, and my parents all looking down at me.

"What happened?" I asked sitting up.

"The secret's out," Tucker explained.

My eyes widened as I looked at my parents in fear.

"We'll worry about that later. First, I'd like you to explain what happened with Sam," Mom demanded pointing to Sam's form on the table.

It was then that everything poured out. I told them about Shadow and what had happened in the past week and what happened in the factory, including what Desiree and Nocturne had said. Once the story was out, they took action.

Mom and Dad rushed around the lab, barking out orders and setting up the lab like a makeshift hospital. They put Sam on an actual bed and Mom made me, Dad, and Tucker leave while she and Jazz began stripping Sam out of the suit and trying to figure out the damage.

It was probably the longest night of my life.

SPOV

I was awake, but I didn't open my eyes. I didn't want too. I wanted to go back to sleep, to go back to the dream I was having. But, the beeping sound next to me wasn't having it. It was a slow steady beeping, almost like a heartbeat. Other sounds began making themselves known. I could hear birds outside, a clock ticking, and breathing… My eyes fluttered open and I was met with an unfamiliar room; mint green walls, white tiled floor, a crappy looking TV mounted on the wall, some cheesy artwork. I looked to my side and saw what was making the beeping noise: a heart monitor. What? I looked down and saw that I was in a hospital bed covered in crisp white sheets and an ugly pink blanket. There was an IV in my arm. I moved to take it out, when a hand stopped me.

"Don't want to do that," someone chuckled, taking their hand back.

I looked over and saw Danny sitting in one of those vinyl chairs that's in every hospital room. He met my gaze and smiled brightly.

"Care to share what happened, and how I'm alive?" I asked attempting to sit up, but groaning in pain.

"Careful! The doctor said you have some bruised ribs. No internal bleeding or broken bones though. And you have quite a few stitches in multiple places," he said.

"Jesus Danny, how you've survived fighting ghosts this long amazes me," I stated. "Now, how am I still alive?"

"I put you and your soul back together. You scared me for a second there. You stopped breathing and had no pulse for a minute or two. Then you started functioning again, and I rushed you back to my house where my parents inspected you and then we took you to the hospital."

"How long was I out?"

"A few days. Mom's theory is that your body was getting used to being fully whole again or something like that."

"Huh. So are you the only one here?"

"Nope. Everyone else is getting some breakfast in the cafeteria. You know, our parents are actually getting along?"

"Wow. What brought that on?"

"Could be that they found out that I saved your life and that I'm the ghost boy."

My mouth dropped open at that.

"What!"

"Oh yeah. I was really weak after I brought you home because I had flown really fast, I think it's a new power, and passed out. I changed back and well my parents saw. Their cool with it though. And then your parents kind of caught me sneaking in when I wasn't supposed to…heh."  
"Okay then… How's my suit?"

"Fine. My parents would like to know how you managed to get the suit they were working on a few years ago though."

"Nocturne told me he stole it from Vlad. The chip too."

"They didn't know where the chip was from, but they said the suit and other weapons were their designs."

"I'm not surprised. Vlad is a thief."

"God, I missed you Sam. Do you know how terrible it was not knowing what happened to you?" he said, taking my hand and holding it in his.

"Really? It sure didn't seem like it. It seemed like you were just fine with Shadow," I said bitingly.

"Yeah, you know why? Because she was a lot like you and she made me feel exactly how I feel when I'm with you. And now it makes perfect since. You were her all along," he murmured, leaning closer to me.

"Stop saying stuff like that! You don't mean them," I muttered.

"Sam, do you honestly think that? I mean every word. Nobody has ever made me feel anything like what you make me feel. We're connected. Two halves of a whole, and any other sickeningly sweet, cheesy saying you can think of," he argued.

"How can I believe you when you've hurt me so much? I saw you with Paulina that day. That's why I wished to forget everything." I whispered feeling my eyes water.

"Sam, she kissed me and I pushed her off. I said that I wasn't interested. But you're right. I have hurt you too many times to count. You have no reason to believe me," he sighed sadly.

"So where does this leave us?" I asked voice tight.

"I don't know," he replied as he stood up and fished something out of his pocket and placed it next to my arm.

I watched him leave and waited for the door to close before I let the tears fall. That was probably the hardest thing I ever had to do. I looked down and gasped. There was the ring, still on the chain. I picked it up and examined the engraving. Sam. My name. How could one little thing have so much meaning?

~ 2 Days Later ~

I looked up at the building nervously. It still looked the same. Same brick foundation, same gaudy Fenton Works sign, same ops center. The same place I had been coming to for sweet escape since I was four years old, and nothing had changed. But my relationship with the boy inside had. Everything was out in the open now. There was no going back. Something was going to change, whether it was for the better or the worst. I deeply hoped it would be better.

My hand played with the ring hanging around my neck. I wasn't sure if wearing it was a good idea, but something told me it was. I took a deep breath and walked up those few steps and knocked on the door. It seemed like hours before I heard the sound of a lock being turned and saw the door handle turn. The door swung open and I exhaled in a mixture of relief and annoyance. It was Jazz who answered the door.

"Hey Sam, how are you feeling?" she asked motioning for me to come in.

I stepped inside and waited until she closed the door.

"A little sore, and don't get me started on the damage to my face, but other than that I'm fine," I replied.

"That's great," she said awkwardly.

"So, your mom said that she fixed the suit and I could come and get it whenever…" I trailed off.

"Oh, right. It's in the lab. You know the way," she said.

I nodded and walked to the kitchen and through the doorway that led to the lab. It was empty. It took me a minute, but I eventually found a big box with my name printed on it in black sharpie. I checked to make sure everything was there. Once I was satisfied, I turned around only to jump back and shriek in surprise.

There he stood with his arms crossed looking at me quietly. I hadn't even heard him come in. I gulped.

"So you weren't even going to say anything to me?" he asked.

"I thought you weren't home," I replied.

"That the suit?" he nodded towards the box.

"Yep…"

"You know I've been looking for a good partner…" he murmured.

I sighed and dropped the box on the floor in frustration.

"Danny don't do this!" I cried.

"I'm sorry Sam, but I can't go on without you in my life," he stated backing me up against the wall and pinning me there. "I'm so sorry for all the crap I put you through. Believe me when I say I never meant to hurt you. That was the last thing I ever wanted to do."

"Danny…" I began, but I stopped when I saw him starring at the ring.

"Why are you wearing this then?" he asked quietly, holding it between us with two fingers.

I shook my head, unable to give him a good answer. I had no idea why I was wearing it. That was all he needed. His mouth was on mine in an instant, and I've never tasted anything so good. He dropped the ring and let it dangle on the chain as his hands clasped my face, making sure I couldn't get away. I didn't want to get away. I practically melted into the wall, depending on it to keep me upright. My hands clutched his shirt desperately. His lips left mine, trailing little kisses all over my face while murmuring promises in between each kiss. Then he pulled me in for another kiss, this time one hand going around my back and clasping my shoulder and the other one grabbing the back of my neck. This pulled us even closer, and if it weren't for my hands trapped between us, our bodies would be touching. This kiss was raw with unshed passion, and when we pulled apart we were both pink from breath loss.

"Sam, I love you," he whispered resting his forehead on mine.

"I love you too," I said with a small smile before leaning in and pressing a small kiss on his lips.

"I promise to never hurt you again," he vowed.

"I know you won't. You never meant to in the first place. I was just scared," I admitted with a dry laugh.

"So what are we now?" he asked.

"You said yourself you needed a partner," I laughed for real this time and he joined in.

He helped me pick up the box and walked back with me upstairs, any unanswered questions between us already answered. We loved each other and would have each other until the end of time, and nothing could tear us apart.


	11. Chapter 11

**The last chapter! This took me forever, but it's worth it! Please enjoy and review, favorite, follow, whatever. **

**I don't own Danny Phantom.**

Epilogue

~ About One Month Later ~

SPOV

"You know it's hard to concentrate when you're doing that," I smirked while holding up my notebook and pen for emphasis.

"That's the point," came Danny's muffled reply as he continued to lightly kiss my neck.

"Yeah, well that's not working for me. Tomorrow's graduation and my speech isn't done," I stated giving him a playful push.

"You've had a month to work on that thing," he whined, lips forming into an adorable pout.

"No. I've had a month to catch up with all my exams and what not," I corrected.

"Forget the speech. Just say that you hated half of them all and get it over with," he said, deciding to place his head in my lap to make working difficult.

"Hmm, tempting, but I don't think so," I chuckled, ruffling his hair.

"Ah, you're no fun."

I smacked him in the forehead and leaned my head back against the couch, closing my eyes in thought. It was silent for a few minutes, until Danny decided to break it.

"Sam?" he asked.

"Hmm?"

"Remember when we got together in the lab?"

"Yes," I replied with a slight smile.

"Why did you say you were scared?"

I pondered this for a minute before deciding on my answer.

"I was afraid of what could happen if we got together. You never hurt me, not really. I mean, everyone's entitled to like who they want, and I was too much a coward to clue you in to my feelings. I just used all that as an excuse to be honest," I said.

"Why?"

"I didn't want to lose you as a friend. Sure there was a small chance that you could return my feelings and then we'd get together, but what if something went wrong? What then? I was just so scared of losing you forever…I still am a little scared actually," I laughed a little at the end.

"Sam, you have no reason to be scared. I love you, and I always will," Danny stated proudly.

"I know, but someone has to be the worrier," I said jokingly, looking down at him.

He rolled his eyes but returned my smile anyways. He sat up and sat on the couch normally.

"Well, I guess you do need to finish that speech…" he sighed.

"Afraid so," I responded with a shrug.

"Well then, get out of my house," he ordered pointing to the door.

"What?" I asked with a shocked laugh.

"I'm going to distract you too much, and I'm not even going to try not to, so it's just best if you get away from me. You'll never get it done if you don't, and that my dear is a promise," he said wiggling his eyebrows at the end.

"Fair enough. Bye, see you tomorrow," I sighed, giving him a light peck on the lips before walking to the door.

"LOVE YOU!" he shouted obnoxiously.

"I love you too," I called back with an eye roll at his childishness.

I walked out into the warm air with a smile on my face. The past month really had been something. Once I had been deemed by the doctor—who by the way just assumed that I had fallen out a window thanks to Danny—that I could go to school, I did. And once I got back and shoved all those fake rumors up everybody's butts (who knew Paulina would actually come close to what actually happened?) the work started. Teachers piled assignments on me left and right, and I can't tell you how many nights I stayed over at Danny's getting help from him, Tuck, and Jazz.

And there was the issue of me and Danny finally getting together. We had to deal with Tuck in all his obnoxious glory, and my parents. That was fun. Actually, they took it better than I thought. I guess saving your daughter's life really has its potential. Danny's still not their favorite person and neither are the rest of the Fenton's, but we're making progress.

Yeah, it's been some month all right, and tomorrow I get to graduate. Scary.

DPOV

"I got Sam's graduation present," I told Tucker and Jazz as we were watching TV later that night.

"What is it?" Jazz asked, intrigued.

"I think you'll approve," I stated tossing her a small box.

She opened it and gasped.

"Danny is this what I think it is?" she quizzed.

"Most likely," I smirked holding my hand out for the box.

"Good choice," she replied with a smile tossing it back to me.

"Dude, you sure about it?" Tucker asked. "Because if you do this and mess it up later, I might just have to kill you."

"Cut the big brother role. I'm positive," I said punching him in the arm.

"Ow!" he cried, rubbing his arm.

I laughed, but then he began trying to punch me back and I was trying to push him off.

"Cut it out!" I whined.

"Hard to believe that you're graduating when you act like that," Jazz muttered.

~ Graduation Night ~

"Jazz!" I called out in frustration from my bedroom.

"What?" she asked while sticking her head in from the door.

"Can you help me with this?" I pointed to the tie around my neck that would not cooperate.

She chuckled lightly and came in and carefully tied it correctly.

"Of course it works for you," I muttered.

"You're just nervous," she assured me.

"Try extremely nervous," I joked dryly.

"You'll be fine," she said giving me a reassuring hug, before leaving me alone.

"I hope you're right," I sighed.

SPOV

I held up the two pairs of shoes in my hands and looked between them. In one hand were my combat boots and in the other were a pair of black heels. I was already wearing a formfitting dress that came above my knee. It was a shimmery black and had a sweetheart neckline and spaghetti straps. I had put a simple silver belt around my waste and had put on some dressy black bracelets and of course, my Shadow bracelet.

I sighed and sadly put the boots down and slipped on the heels. It was graduation after all, and even I had to admit that the boots would look terrible with the dress and the cap and gown. I had curled my hair slightly and was satisfied with how it cascaded down my back and around my shoulders. I may have been uncomfortable, but at least I looked good.

"Sam?" my mom called from the other side of my door.

"Come in," I said before applying some of my signature lavender lipstick.

She walked in and gasped as she took me in.

"Sam, you look beautiful," she gushed.

"Really? But I'm wearing black."

"Yes, you are, but it looks perfect on you," she sighed.

"Thanks Mom," I smiled.

She smiled in return and pulled me into a hug. When we parted I began pulling on my red graduation gown and white valedictorian sash. She handed me the red cap with a tearful smile and watched as I put it on.

"Let's hurry up! I want to get there before I die!" Grandma suddenly said as she rode her scooter into my room.

"Aw, we're coming," Mom laughed walking out the door.

"Knock 'em dead bubala," Grandma said with a wink before she left.

I smiled and grabbed Danny's ring from my dresser, now chainless, and slipped it on my pinky. It had grown too small for my other fingers over the years. I took a deep breath and left the room.

DPOV

After what felt like hours of endless picture taking, we finally got to the school. My parents hugged me and went to find seats in the bleachers, leaving me alone with Jazz.

"You're going to do great little brother," she said before following them.

I stood outside the gates with all the other seniors waiting for Tucker and Sam. Tucker came first.

"Hey dude," he said as he made sure his cap was straight.

"Nice to see you with different head wear for a change," I joked.

"Harhar, don't get used to it," he snapped, pulling out his PDA and playing a game.

"Hey guys!" Sam suddenly called running out to us.

"Wow Sam, you look amazing," I gasped looking her up and down.

Her hair was all down for once and curled. I couldn't see what she was wearing yet, but I knew it was a dress because all I could see where her gown ended were her bare legs and black heels.

"Oh please, you haven't even seen my outfit yet," she scoffed.

"Don't have to," I laughed pulling her in for a quick kiss.

"Guys! I'm right here!" Tucker groaned.

We pulled apart and blushed, muttering apologies we didn't even mean.

"Hey kids, how about a picture?" Sam's grandma suddenly asked as she rode up on her scooter, holding up a camera.

"Why not?" we all said as we got in close and wrapped our arms around each other and smiled.

After that, Sam's parents came over and ushered Grandma Manson away from us and over to their seats.

"Well, is your speech ready?" I asked throwing my arm around Sam's shoulder.

"Ready as it'll ever be I guess," she sighed nervously.

"You'll be perfect," I said reassuringly.

"Yeah Sam, you're going to kick butt," Tucker agreed.

"Thanks guys," she laughed, wrapping her arms around our wastes and giving us a hug.

"I can't believe our high school days are almost over," Tucker sighed.

"Are you sad about that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Heck no! I'm definitely not going to miss these people," he laughed.

"I think I might actually miss the Prissy Squad. They did always give me a good laugh," Sam sighed happily.

"I won't. I hope they all move to the other side of the world," I stated making Tucker and Sam laugh.

Suddenly the speakers came to life.

"Attention seniors please get in ABC order and prepare to march," Mr. Lancer instructed.

I gave Sam once last kiss on the lips before scrambling to get in my spot between Tucker and Mikey. The graduation music started and we marched out on the field and took our seats.

"As Casper High's principal, I am pleased to announce this year's valedictorian and salutatorian. Samantha Manson and Lester Prim," Principal Ishiyama said.

Everyone clapped and Sam and Lester made their way to the stage. Lester made his speech and then it was Sam's turn. Everyone grew quiet when she took her turn at the podium.

"I could stand here and tell you what's been said in almost every graduation speech you've heard in almost every cheesy high school movie you've seen like "We'll always look back on these days" or "This isn't the end, it's a new beginning" or "We are the leaders of tomorrow", but I'm not going to do that. Instead, I'll give you a new one. People who never make mistakes never make anything. Now, you're probably all thinking Sam, what the heck does that mean? Don't be afraid to make mistakes. It sure beats sitting in your room staring at the wall. Without mistakes there would be nothing to learn off of or get up from. I'm sure we've had our fair share of mistakes during high school, and I'm sure that since you're graduating you think it's all over. Wrong. There will be more, and they will probably be worse, but that's what life will throw at you. The only question is if you're willing to face that or are you going to hide under a blanket for the rest of your life? I know I'm willing to face whatever life throws at me, and I hope you are too. So, make your mistakes and live from them. Congratulations Class of 2009."

We all stood and clapped as she went off the stage and took her seat. Then Principal Ishiyama took the stand and began calling out the names.

"Dash Baxter," she said.

Dash rushed up to the stage, grabbed his diploma and went back to his seat. It wasn't long till they got to the F's.

"Mikey Falker," she called.

Mikey went to get his diploma.

"Danny Fenton," I stood up and began walking.

It felt like years before I made it to the stage. She handed me the diploma and shook my hand. I walked down the other side where Mr. Lancer was waiting.

"Congratulations Mr. Fenton," he said shaking my hand.

"Thank you Mr. Lancer," I said before making my way back to my seat.

"Tucker Foley."

It went on like this for a long time, and my legs were beginning to hurt.

"Samantha Manson," I smiled as Sam walked back up and took her diploma.

She looked radiant.

Then after a few more names, it was finally over.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Graduating Class of 2009!"

We all cheered and tossed our caps up into the air, letting them rain down. Then we collected them and scattered about, talking to friends and family. That could wait though, I had someone else to find first.

SPOV

"You're speech was great Sam," someone told me as they walked by.

"Thanks!" I called.

It had been going on like this since we tossed our caps. I was standing off to the side, looking for someone I actually talked to. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw Danny standing there with a smile. I grinned and threw myself at him, wrapping my arms around his neck and hugging him close.

"I can't believe we finally graduated!" I squealed, "Nothing could be better than this!"

He chuckled as we pulled apart, holding each other's hands.

"I wouldn't say that," he said looking down at the ring on my pinky.

"I didn't  
fit my ring finger," I said, following his gaze.

"Well then this is perfect timing then," he laughed.

"What?" I asked in confusion.

He bent down on the ground and got on one knee and pulled a small, blue velvet box out of his pocket. I raised an eyebrow. What was he doing? Then he opened the box and there nestled in all the velvet lining, was a ring with band made out of black gold and an amethyst stone in the center with two small diamonds on either side. It was beautiful.

"Samantha Manson, will you marry me?" he asked, blushing slightly.

Tears gathered in my eyes.

"Yes!" I cried throwing myself at him again, only this time it wasn't a hug.

My mouth met his in a passionate kiss, my hands practically crushing his face. I felt him smile and pull away. He took the ring and showed it to me.

"It's engraved too. It seemed appropriate," he teased, causing me to laugh.

He slipped it on my finger and we kissed again, still on the ground surrounded by celebrating graduates.

Nothing could be better.

**Well, that was the end to my first long fan fic. I really hate Sam's speech...if I ever become valedictorian I'm going with what Danny said. Anyways, I honestly hoped you enjoyed this, and thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed. I look forward to posting the rest of the series. :)**


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